Rapamycin inhibited the proliferation of prostate carcinoma cell line PC-3M-2B4 in vitro

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effects of Rapamycin on the growth and apoptosis of human prostate carcinoma cell line PC-SM-21M. Methods The inhibitory effect of Rapamycin was observed at 100,200,400,800μg/L on the growth of human prostate carcinoma cell line PC-3M-2B4 in serum-free medium for different concentrations by methyl thiazol tetrazolium （M3W） assays. Flow cytometry （FCM） analysis was used to study the changes of cell apoptosis. The expression level of bcl-2 and bax was determined by Western blotting. Results Rapamycin caused dose-dependent inhibition on the growth of human prostate carcinoma cell line PC-3M-2B4 in a concentration-and time dependent manner. Rapamycin induced the apoptosis of PC-SM-2B4 cells in a concentration-dependent manner. The levels of bcl-2 protein were reduced gradually with the increase of concentration or action time. Conclusion Rapamycin, a mTOR inhibitor, inhibits the growth of human prostate cancer cell and induces apoptosis of human prostate cancer cell. mTOR might be a potential target for anti-prostate cancer. Key words: mTOR; Rapamycin ; bcl-2 ; Apoptosis ; Signal pathway